Plotra DocsQuestions and troubleshooting
Short answers to the questions people ask most, the things Plotra does not do yet and what to do instead, and what the common messages and limits mean.
Short answers, each with a link to the page that covers the subject in full. Some of the questions are about things Plotra does not have. Those are answered plainly, with a way round where there is one.
Words you don't recognise are in the Glossary.
Getting started
Is Plotra free?
The hosted version has a Free plan with every view and every module, no time limit and no card. Pro is $10 a month, or $96 a year, for a whole workspace, and adds room, more people and hosted AI. A Plotra you host yourself is free and has no plans. See Plans and billing.
Do I have to install anything?
No. Plotra runs in the browser. There is no desktop app and no phone app to install. If you would rather run the servers yourself, see Self-hosting.
Does it work on a phone?
It opens in a phone's browser, in a narrower layout: one pane at a time, the binder and the inspector as drawers over the page, and the ribbon as a bar across the top with a Views and commands menu. Split panes come back when the window is wide enough. There is no separate app. See The screen.
What is the difference between a workspace and a project?
A workspace is you, or you and your team: its members can open every project in it, and the plan belongs to it. A project is one story or one world. See Workspaces and projects.
Which project type should I pick?
The one closest to what you are making. The type is a preset: it picks the modules that start on, the format of new scenes and what a release is called. It locks nothing, and you can change it later in the project settings. See Project types.
Can I look around before I write anything?
Yes. Open a sample project: Romeo and Juliet, or a tabletop campaign. A sample is a copy of your own, and it counts as one project in the workspace. See Sample projects.
The guide says ⌘. I am on Windows.
Use Ctrl where the docs say ⌘, and Alt for ⌥. See Keyboard shortcuts.
Where are all the views? I only see five.
The ribbon starts with five. Every other view is under More, and you choose which ones stay in your ribbon. A view that belongs to a module is listed only while that module is on. See The ribbon and A view is missing.
Your account and sign-in
I forgot my password.
There is no "forgot password" link and no password reset. If you signed up with Continue with Google, sign in that way: that account has no password. If you signed up with a password and have lost it, the app has no way to let you back in, on the hosted version or on a server you host. Keep the password in a password manager. See What you can't change yet.
Can I change my password, name, email address or picture?
No. The account has no profile page. Your picture is the one from Google if you signed up with it; otherwise Plotra shows your initials. You also can't add Google sign-in to a password account, or a password to a Google account. See What you can't change yet.
Can I delete my account?
Not from the app. There is no account deletion.
Sign-in says I have tried too many times.
Sign-in is limited to 5 attempts a minute, and creating an account to 5 an hour. Wait and try again. See Signing in.
How long do I stay signed in?
Seven days, renewed while you keep using Plotra in that browser. Sign out signs out the browser you are in. There is no list of your sessions and no way to sign out your other devices. See Signing in.
Can I rename, delete or leave a workspace?
No. A workspace's name and address can't be changed, a workspace can't be deleted, and you can't remove yourself from one.
- To leave, ask an owner or an admin to remove you.
- For a different name, create another workspace from the switcher at the top of the projects page. Projects can't be moved between workspaces, so the new one starts empty.
Can I delete or archive a project?
No. There is no button to delete, archive or move a project. You can rename it under Project settings → General → Title, and you can trash and delete the notes inside it. The project itself stays and keeps counting towards the workspace's project limit. See Project settings.
The invitation page says "Invitation not available".
The invitation expired (they last 48 hours), was cancelled, was already used, or was sent to a different address than the one you are signed in with. Ask for a new one to the address you use, or sign in with the other address. See Accepting an invitation.
A shared project says "This was shared with a different address".
The project was shared with another address than the one you are signed in with. Sign in with that address, or ask for the project to be shared with the one you use. See Opening a shared project.
Writing and the editor
Where is the save button?
There isn't one. Every change is saved as you make it, and the status bar says Synced when it has reached the server. See Saving and working offline.
Can I upload a picture into a note?
No. The editor does not upload pictures, and an image file pasted or dropped into the text is not inserted. An image is added by its address: choose Image in the block menu and give a web address that starts with http:// or https://.
So put the picture somewhere on the web first and use that address. One other route exists for research notes only: with the Research & sources module on, attach the image to a source and choose Insert into note, which adds it to that research note. Such an image shows inside Plotra and is left out of exports. See Images and Attachments and files.
I deleted a note by mistake.
It is in the Trash at the bottom of the binder. Point at its row and click Restore. A note is only gone once someone chooses Delete forever or Empty trash, and that can't be undone. See The trash.
How do I get back an earlier version of a note?
Open Review → History in the inspector, click a version, and choose Restore this version. The current text is saved as a version first, so a restore can itself be undone. Automatic snapshots are taken while a note is being edited, at most once every half hour, and the latest 40 are kept. See Version history.
Can I change the font?
Yes, for yourself. Open Customize from More in the ribbon and go to The page: typeface, text size, line width, line spacing and paragraphs. A note in a script format keeps its own layout. See How the page looks.
Can I call a chapter an "episode"?
Yes. In Project settings → Words, type your own word for Folder, Chapter, Scene, Note, Character, Location or Research. See Words.
My tabs and splits are gone on another computer.
Open tabs, splits, pinned tabs, open folders, sidebar widths and changed keyboard shortcuts are kept in your browser. To carry an arrangement with you, save it as a layout (⌘⇧L): saved layouts are kept with your account. See Saved layouts.
The word count in the status bar is behind.
words in project counts notes as last saved, so it follows a little behind your typing. The count for the open note is live. See Word counts.
I added a Select property and it has no choices.
The inspector has no place to type the choices of a new Select field. Use Multi-select, which takes new choices as you type them. The fields of a world-entry type are the exception: their choices are set where the type is defined. See Custom fields.
Is there a code block?
No. The editor has inline code only. A fenced code block in an imported Markdown file becomes one paragraph in code type. See Blocks.
Links, canon and the spoiler horizon
A link reads "Restricted note".
The note it points at was deleted for good, or you are not allowed to open it. This also happens to links into a shared world when you can't open the world project, or when the shared world was set back to None. See Renaming, trash and broken links.
A link is struck through.
The note it points at is in the trash. Restore the note and the link works again.
Does renaming a note break links to it?
No. A link points at the note, not at its name, so every link shows the new name at once. A link to a heading is different: headings are matched by their text, so after renaming a heading, make the link again. See Renaming, trash and broken links.
I made a link and it isn't in Backlinks yet.
Links are indexed a few seconds after you stop typing, and the Links tab refreshes every ten seconds. Block tags lag the same way in the roadmap and the Story tab. See How fresh the lists are.
The Story tab is missing from the inspector.
It appears when World bible, Releases & reveals or Research & sources is on. Someone who manages the project switches modules on in Project settings → Modules. See The Story tab.
Does the spoiler horizon hide things from the people I share with?
No. The horizon filters what you see while you work, and what goes into an export or a wiki. It is not a permission. A viewer reads the whole project, and so does anyone with the read-only link, passages marked "Never" included. To keep unrevealed material from someone, give them a wiki or an export made at the horizon, or keep the secrets in a separate project. See The spoiler horizon.
I set a horizon and still see everything in some views.
The Corkboard, Plot grid, Manuscript, Relationships and Canvas views show everything, and so do search, the quick switcher, the link picker and the Links tab. Opening a dimmed note also shows its text. See What it does not hide.
My horizon is gone on another device.
The horizon is remembered in your browser, for each project. Each device and each co-writer sets their own.
A passage tagged "Never" is in my PDF.
A PDF is printed from the Read view, and with no horizon on, the Read view shows every passage. Set a horizon before printing a copy for someone else. File exports, EPUB and the wiki always leave "Never" passages out. See Passages marked Never.
The Continuity view finds nothing.
The checks read what you have recorded: story dates, durations, points of view, locations, birth and death dates, links, who knows what, setups. They do not read your prose. The line under the toolbar says how many scenes have a story date. See What the checks read.
The public wiki comes out empty.
Only canon pages and passages starts ticked, and every note starts as Draft. Mark pages as Canon, or untick the box. In a project with releases, a page also has to be revealed by some release. See Which pages are published.
Working with others
Should I invite someone to the workspace or share a project?
Invite them to the workspace when they should work on everything in it. Share a project when they should see only that project, or only read or comment. See Working together.
Can I hide one folder or one note from someone?
No. There are no permissions on single notes or folders: everything in a project follows the project. Put what must stay hidden in a separate project. See Roles and permissions.
I can't find the Share button.
Only the workspace's owners and admins can share a project. The button is not shown to members, editors or anyone else. See Sharing a project.
I removed someone and they can still see the note.
Removing access takes effect on their next request. A note they already have open stops receiving and sending live changes within ten minutes. The read-only link is different: switching it off or resetting it works at once. See When access changes.
The workspace or the project is full.
| Limit | Free | Pro | Self-hosted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Workspace members, counting the owner and open invitations | 3 | 25 | No limit |
| People one project is shared with | 5 | 200 | 200 |
To let one more person into one project when the workspace is full, share the project with them instead of inviting them. See Members and Guests.
I can't mention someone with @.
Only workspace members can be mentioned. Someone a project is merely shared with is not in the list, and typing their name notifies nobody. See Mentions.
Why does a comment say "Former member"?
Names come from the workspace's member list. A comment by a guest, or by someone who has left the workspace, is shown to others as "Former member". See Comments.
A note says Locked and I can't edit it.
The note is in a workflow stage ticked Locked. Only its approvers can change it: its required reviewers and the people who manage the project. You can still read and comment. Ask an approver to change it, or to move it back to an earlier stage. See Locked content.
How do I leave a project that was shared with me?
You can't remove yourself. Ask an owner or an admin of that workspace to do it.
Is the read-only link safe to post?
Treat it like a public page. Anyone with the link can read everything in the project without an account, unrevealed notes and "Never" passages included. Switch it off or reset it in the Share dialog. See A read-only link.
What happens if two of us edit the same paragraph?
Both edits are kept. Text is merged as you type; nobody takes turns and nothing is locked. See Writing at the same time.
Import, export and publishing
Can I import a zip?
No. Unzip it and use Choose a folder… in the import dialog, which takes a folder and everything under it. This is also how an Obsidian vault and a Plotra "file per note" export come back in. See What you can import.
Which files can I import?
Markdown (.md, .markdown, .mdown), Word (.docx) and plain text (.txt, .text). An old .doc file is refused: save it as .docx first. From any other program, export to one of these first. Fountain has its own command; see below.
Where is Fountain import and export?
Not in the import and export dialogs. With the Script formats module on, the command palette has "Import Fountain…" and "Export as Fountain". See Fountain.
How do I get a PDF?
Choose PDF in the export dialog, or click Print / PDF in the Read view, then choose "Save as PDF" in your browser's print dialog. The paper size is US Letter, and the Read view holds up to 400 notes at a time. See Printing and PDF.
Is an export a full backup?
No. Markdown, a file per note (.zip) is the closest: it keeps the text, the structure, titles, tags and links. It loses each note's kind, its properties, canon and reveal tags, comments, version history, canvases, timelines, dialogues and uploaded files. See Out and back in.
My pictures are missing from the export.
Images are never put inside an exported file. Markdown keeps the address of an image that was added by web address. An image uploaded to Plotra has no address outside Plotra, so exports, EPUB, the wiki and the series bible leave it out. Pictures in an imported vault are not imported either. See How the text is written.
Does Plotra host my wiki?
No. The public wiki is a zip of plain HTML files that you download. Unzip it and upload the folder to any host that serves static files, such as GitHub Pages, Netlify or Cloudflare Pages. It is a copy from the moment you downloaded it, so download again after a new release. To show a live project to someone without hosting anything, use the read-only link, which shows everything. See Putting it online.
Can I import Ink, Yarn or Twine?
No. Dialogues export to Ink, Yarn Spinner, Twine and JSON, and none of them can be read back in. See Exporting a dialogue.
The import says it is too large.
One import can hold 10 MB, 1,000 files and 1,500 notes. On the hosted version a single request is also held to about 4.5 MB, so import a larger manuscript in parts. See Limits.
Can a viewer export my project?
Yes. Export and publishing need only the right to read, so a viewer can take the whole project away as a file. Share as viewer only with people you would hand the file to. See Who can import and export.
AI
I don't see any AI.
AI is off until three things are true: an owner or admin has switched it on for the workspace, someone who manages the project has ticked AI agent under Project settings → Modules, and you can edit the project and have a model. Viewers and commenters never see it. See Turning it on.
Do I need an API key?
On Free, yes: your own key, or a model running on your own computer. A Pro workspace on the hosted version also has hosted AI with 1,500 credits a month, so nobody in it needs a key. See Whose model it runs on.
Is my writing used to train a model?
Not by Plotra, which has no model. Nothing leaves Plotra until someone runs the agent or an inline action. Then the text goes to the provider of the person who ran it, and what that provider does with it is between them and the key's owner. See What is sent, and where.
Can I undo what the agent did?
Yes. Under an answer that changed something, Undo run takes back everything that run changed. In Suggest mode the text edits are suggestions, so you can also reject them one by one. See Undoing a run.
My local model behaves as if it had no tools.
Ollama's default context is 4,096 tokens, which is smaller than the agent's own instructions. Set OLLAMA_CONTEXT_LENGTH=16384 or more. The model also has to support tool calling, and the model server has to allow requests from the app's address. See A local model.
"This workspace has used its 1,500 AI credits for this month."
Hosted credits are used up until the date in the message. Runs on your own key or a local model carry on. See When credits run out.
The other messages the agent can show are listed under Messages you may see.
Plans, limits and billing
What happens when I reach a limit?
You get a message that says what the limit is, and you can't add more of that thing. Nothing is deleted, nothing becomes read-only, and export always works. See What happens when you reach one.
"A workspace can hold 10 projects on the Free plan."
A Free workspace holds 10 projects, samples included. The message suggests deleting one, but a project can't be deleted yet, so the two ways past it are another workspace or Pro. See Projects.
"Files can be up to 4 MB."
On the hosted version every uploaded file is capped at 4 MB, on both plans. For a larger image, add it by its web address instead of uploading it. A Plotra you host yourself allows 100 MB a file with a file store and 10 MB without. See Uploaded files.
"This workspace's 50 MB of storage is full."
Storage is the uploaded files and version snapshots of every project in the workspace. When it is full, uploads and named versions are refused, automatic versions stop being kept, and the AI agent can't edit text. Writing carries on. Remove files or old versions, or move the workspace to Pro, which has 50 GB. See Storage.
Who can upgrade or cancel?
Only an owner of the workspace. Admins can see Plan & billing and can't change the plan. Cancelling is done under Manage billing, and the workspace keeps Pro to the end of the period already paid for. See Who can manage billing.
Can I get a refund?
A first payment is refunded in full if you ask within 14 days, and so is a yearly renewal. A monthly renewal is not. See Refunds.
Do I lose anything if I go back to Free?
No. The workspace keeps every project, note, file and version. You can't add beyond the Free limits until you are under them, and hosted AI stops. See Going back to Free.
Is the price per person?
No. The price is per workspace, whatever the number of members.
Self-hosting
Is a self-hosted Plotra limited?
It has every feature and module, no plans, and no limit on projects, storage or workspace members. A project can be shared with 200 people, and the rate limits still apply. Backups, upgrades and TLS are yours to do. See How it differs from the hosted version.
The editor stays on "Connecting…".
The browser can't reach the collab server at NEXT_PUBLIC_COLLAB_URL, or that value changed and the app image was not rebuilt, or BETTER_AUTH_URL is not the address in the browser's address bar. See Troubleshooting.
Signing in fails or doesn't stick.
BETTER_AUTH_URL has to match the browser's address exactly: https against http, the host and the port.
Creating a note does nothing.
You are on plain HTTP at an address other than localhost. Browsers switch off features Plotra relies on there. Use localhost or put the instance behind HTTPS. See Quick start.
No email arrives.
Without SMTP_URL no email is sent. Each invitation and sharing link is written to the app's log, and you pass it on yourself. The daily digest also needs a scheduler that you set up by hand. See Sign-in and email and The daily digest.
How do I keep strangers from signing up?
Anyone who can reach the instance can create an account. They get their own workspace and see nothing of yours. To keep them out, don't expose the instance to the internet, or put your reverse proxy's access control in front of it. See Sign-in and email.
An upload is refused with a 413.
The reverse proxy's request body limit is smaller than the file. Raise it. See Reverse proxy and TLS.
How do I back up and upgrade?
Dump the database with pg_dump, archive the file store's volume, and keep your .env. To upgrade, back up, then git pull and docker compose up -d --build. See Backups and Upgrading.
When something goes wrong
The status bar says Offline or Connecting…
| State | Meaning | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Synced | Every change is on the server. | Nothing. |
| Connecting… | Plotra is reaching the collaboration server. | Wait a moment. |
| Offline | Changes are kept on this device. | Keep writing. They sync when you are back online. |
Offline, you can keep writing in any note you have opened on this device before. Its tab shows a dot until the changes have gone up. When the connection returns, your changes and everyone else's are merged, and nothing is lost. See Saving and working offline.
"Can't reach the collaboration server, and this note isn't saved on this device yet. Retrying…"
You are offline and have never opened this note on this device, so there is no local copy to show. It opens once the connection is back.
A new note, a rename or a move was undone.
Only text works offline. Changes to the binder, properties, comments, versions and sharing need the server, and one that can't reach it is undone with a message. Try again when the status bar says Synced. See If your connection drops.
"That's a lot in a short time. Try again in a minute."
You reached a rate limit: a cap on how often one person does one thing. The message says how many minutes to wait, and the count starts again after that. The limits are the same on every plan. A few of them:
| What | Limit per person |
|---|---|
| Comments, replies and reactions | 600 an hour |
| Sharing a project | 60 an hour |
| Workspace invitations | 40 an hour |
| File uploads | 200 an hour |
| Imports | 30 every 10 minutes |
| Messages to the AI agent | 40 every 10 minutes |
The whole list is under Rate limits.
"You don't have permission to edit in this project."
Your role does not allow the action. The message names it: read, comment, edit, delete or manage. A few menu items are not greyed out for people who can't use them, such as Duplicate for a viewer; the server refuses and nothing changes. See The five actions.
A change is refused because the note is locked.
The message reads "Note is stage and locked. Ask an approver to change it, or to move it out of stage." A folder with a locked note inside can't be trashed either. See A note says Locked above.
A view or a command is missing.
Check these in order:
- It is under More. The ribbon shows only the views you pinned.
- Its module is off. Continuity needs World bible; Release roadmap and Secrets & setups need Releases & reveals; Sources, Reviews, Production, Quests, Strings, Translate and Publish each need their own module. A view whose module is off is not in the ribbon, under More or in the command palette. Someone who manages the project switches modules on in Project settings → Modules.
- You can't use it. The AI view is offered only while AI is on for the workspace and the project, and only to people who can edit.
See Views that come with a module.
What does the Beta tag mean?
Four modules carry it: Script formats, Production, Interactive narrative and Localization. They are the newer modules, and are open to everyone on every plan. A project type is tagged Beta when its tool set includes one of them. See Beta modules.
"This link no longer works."
The project may have been deleted, or your access was removed. Ask whoever shared it to send it again. A read-only link that was switched off or reset shows a "not found" page instead.
A notification email didn't come.
Notifications always appear under the bell. Email follows your setting under Your settings → Email notifications, which starts as a daily digest. Emails are also limited to twelve an hour for each person and to a daily budget for the whole server; what doesn't fit arrives in the next digest. See Email.
The text looks wrong after two people edited it, or I want yesterday's text back.
Use the note's version history: Review → History in the inspector. See Version history.
Reporting a problem
If something is broken, or an answer here is wrong, open an issue at github.com/ItzSudhan/plotra/issues. Say what you did, what you expected and what happened, and include the exact message if there was one. Don't paste your manuscript or anything private: issues are public.